Beef Bourguignon

This traditional French Dish has been made iconic several times over and can definitely be considered a labor of love, yo'u’ll see…... The traditional version of Beef Bourguignon is already very close to being AIP compliant, so with a few tweaks to this recipe, you can make this elimination phase approved and with the help of an Instapot or Ninja Foodie you can also cut down on the cooking time. Warning* this is a bit labor intensive so make sure if you’re wanting to serve this dish you plan accordingly. Ok, here we go…..

Here’s What You’ll Need:

• Stew Meat - 2 LBS ( I used the lamb I deboned which I then used for my Bone Broth)

• AIP Bacon - 6 Thick Cut Slices, chopped into small pieces (No fillers, no sugar, just bacon)

• Baby Carrots - 1 LB

• Pearl Onions - 12 oz peeled and clean

• Sliced Mushrooms - 16 oz

• Roasted Garlic - Whole Clove

• Bone Broth - 2-3 Cups

• Bacon Fat or Olive Oil - 3 TBSP

• Red Wine - 1 Cup ( I used a Merlot)

• Bay Leaf - 4-5 Leaves

• Thyme - 1 TBSP

• Rosemary - 4-5 Stems

• Sea Salt - 1-3 tsp (To taste)

• Garlic Powder - 1 tsp

Start in a large sauce pan over medium heat and add in your chopped bacon and bay leaves and begin to brown. Should only take a few minutes. Once the bacon is starting to crisp, remove the bay leaves and transfer the bacon to a dutch oven or Ninja Foodie. I set my Ninja to sear/sauté as I and in more mix as it helps to start melding the flavors together. Make sure you are checking and stirring frequently if you do this.

Next, the stew meat. Add 1 TBSP of Bacon Fat OR 1/2 TBSP of Olive Oil, the same bay leaves and thyme into the pan, give a second for the bacon fat to heat and start to simmer the herbs then had the stew meat into the hot pan to sear on the outside. Give the meat a few shakes of salt and stir frequently until all sides of the stew meat are browned, add in the red wine.

Let simmer for one minute then remove the meat into the casserole dish or pressure cooker, leaving the wine and bay leaves behind. Stir the wine mix around the pan to get all of the yummy flavor off of the sides, remove the bay leaves and pour the liquid into your dutch oven or pressure cooker. Stirring everything together.

Now the mushrooms! Add another 1 TBSP of Bacon Fat OR 1/2 TBSP of Olive Oil and the same bay leaves back into your pan. Give it a second for the fat/oil to start simmering the bay leaves then add in your mushrooms and a few shakes of salt and garlic powder. Stir frequently until the mushrooms are nice and brown, remove the bay leaves again and transfer to your mix.

Lastly the pearl onions! Add another 1 TBSP of Bacon Fat OR 1/2 TBSP of Olive Oil and the same bay leaves and rosemary into your pan. Same as before, give the mix a second to heat before putting in the onions. You’re doing this to get a nice flavorful crust on everything. Once the onions show a nice golden brown around most of the sides go ahead and remove the bay leaves and large rosemary sprigs and transfer the onions to your mix.

In your final stew add in the baby carrots and roasted garlic cloves. Depending on how much “Sauce” you want you can add in your bone broth. The more broth, the thinner the sauce making it a little bit more soup like, so up to you. I added just 2 cups as I wanted it to be more like a stew. Shake in the rest of your salt and give your stew a really good mix.

If you are cooking in a dutch oven, cover your Beef Bourguignon and place in a 300 degree oven for the next 4 to 5 hours. (This is why I used a pressure cooker, to cut down this time.) You’ll want the beef to be fall apart tender, yum!

For an Instapot or Ninja Foodie, go ahead and seal the top and cook on high pressure for 45 minutes.

Tip** If you like your carrots to be a bit more al dente, add them to your dutch oven during the final 30 minutes of cooking. For a pressure cooker, complete the initial 45 minutes, decompress then stir in the carrots, reseal the lid and cook for ten minutes. Basically I just let it get to pressure again then shut it off, carrots don’t take long.

Once you’re done cooking, go a head and give a taste test, adding in more salt as needed. Remember you can always add more salt, but you can’t take it away. I served mine over some mashed Sweet Potatoes and chopped parsley for a “stick to your bones” hearty meal. This mix also keeps extremely well in the fridge and can be enjoyed for several days.

Well look at that! You just conquered Beef Bourguignon, go ahead and give yourself a gold star, Food Fight Thyme approved!

Enjoy!